Environmental Information: EPA Actions Could Reduce the Availability of Environmental Information to the Public Page: 4 of 36
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brief Form A in lieu of the detailed Form R report if they release or
manage no more than 500 pounds of a chemical that is not persistent,
bioaccumulative, and toxic (non-PBT) during the year. Form A provides
nearly the same facility identification information as Form R, along with
basic information about the chemical's identity, but it does not contain any
of the detailed information about the quantities of chemicals used,
released, or managed as waste found on Form R.
During the past several years, EPA has engaged in a multi-phased effort to
reduce the burden on industry by revising TRI regulations and increasing
Form A eligibility. EPA's Action Development Process (ADP) outlines a
series of steps that the agency is to follow when developing actions such
as regulations, policy statements, and risk assessments. The purpose of
the ADP is ensure that scientific, economic, and policy issues are
adequately addressed at the appropriate stages of action development and
to ensure cross-agency participation until the final action is completed.
ADP steps include (1) chartering a workgroup comprised of
representatives from various internal and regional offices who will
develop the action, (2) preparing and executing an analytic blueprint for
analyses needed to support the action, and (3) conducting final agency
review. On December 22, 2006, EPA issued the TRI Burden Reduction
proposed rule, an action that increased the Form A threshold for certain
facilities to 2,000 pounds of releases for a non-PBT chemical. The action
also allows, for the first time, certain facilities to use Form A for non-
dioxin, persistent bioaccumulative toxic (PBT) chemicals, such as lead
and mercury, provided that they release none of the PBT chemical to the
environment.
My testimony is based on ongoing work that we expect to complete in
June 2007 and, therefore, the information I am presenting is preliminary.
My statement today addresses two areas related to EPA's changes in TRI
reporting requirements: (1) the extent to which EPA followed internal
rulemaking guidelines when developing its December 2006 TRI burden
reduction rule and (2) our preliminary estimates of the impact that these
changes will have on TRI data available to the public and on costs to
industry. In addition, as you requested, my statement includes a brief
summary of our May 2005 report on perchlorate and EPA's December 2006
response to our recommendation that the agency develop a tracking
system for perchlorate releases and cleanup efforts across the federal
government and state agencies.
Summary Although we have not yet completed our review, our preliminary
observations are that EPA did not adhere to all aspects of its rulemakingGAO-07-464T
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United States. Government Accountability Office. Environmental Information: EPA Actions Could Reduce the Availability of Environmental Information to the Public, text, February 6, 2007; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc293045/m1/4/: accessed March 29, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.